UK cancer death rates for women are among the worst in Europe

British women are more likely to die from cancer than women living elsewhere
in Europe and the gap is widening, figures showed.

The UK has the fifth highest cancer death rate for women among the 27 European Union countries but spending on health is lower in Britain than other leading economies.

Only Poland, Ireland, the Czech Republic and Hungary had worse records for deaths from cancer among women.

The figures came in the latest Social Trends report from the Office for National Statistics, which included detailed comparisons of Britain’s position within the rest of Europe.

The ONS report said: “Breast cancer is the most common form of female cancer in England and Wales. It is also the second most common cause of cancer deaths in women, after lung cancer.”

Death rates from breast cancer fell in the UK and the rest of Europe between 2000 and 2007. “However, the death rate from breast cancer for women in the UK has remained higher than the EU in 2007 at 26.8 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants compared with 23.6.”

The figures showed that the gap between the UK and the European average for cancer deaths among women had widened.

In 2007, 153.7 women out of every 100,000 inhabitants died from cancer, 22.2 more deaths than the average across the 27 EU countries. This gap was wider than at any point since 2001.

Catherine Thomson, head of statistics at Cancer Research UK, called for better screening to detect cancers at an earlier stage.

“Some progress has been made for breast cancer but our rates are still among the highest and there is clear room for improvement,” she said.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Health said ministers would introduce a new £200 million a year Cancer Drugs Fund to provide better treatment.

The ONS figures also showed that women’s life expectancy was several months lower in the UK than the EU average. Typically British women’s life expectancy in 2007 was 81.9 years, compared with 82.2. Men, with a life expectancy of 77.7 years, were 1 year and six months above the EU average.

Spending on health as a proportion of GDP was lower in the UK than any other G7 country apart from Japan.